Press Release

30 September 2024, London – Shoosmiths today announces the introduction of its Legal and Compliance Operations team through a strategic collaboration with two highly experienced consultants, John Bennett and Lucy Powell.

The collaboration, part of Shoosmiths EIGHT, represents a significant enhancement of the firm’s client offerings, reinforcing Shoosmiths’ position as a trusted business partner by driving greater client value through improved operational efficiency.

This expansion aligns with Shoosmiths’ ongoing strategic commitment to providing clients with comprehensive, high-value solutions that go beyond traditional legal services. Shoosmiths EIGHT, the firm’s connected services division, is dedicated to developing and offering non-legal products that complement legal advice. The suite of offerings is designed to help clients thrive by working smarter, faster, and better in an increasingly complex business world.

The addition of the Legal and Compliance Operations capability will offer clients key benefits, including functional Strategy and operating model reviews, helping in-house teams navigate the right technology solutions, and assisting GCs optimise their legal risk management.

Tom Speller, director of Shoosmiths EIGHT, said: “John and Lucy’s collective expertise in legal operations, compliance, and business transformation will help us deliver significant value to our clients by not only providing legal services but by giving them advice and tools they need to run their businesses better. This collaboration represents an important step in solidifying Shoosmiths as a business partner to our clients, offering truly comprehensive solutions.”

Consultant profiles

• John Bennett has more than two decades’ experience in leading and transforming legal teams in some of the world’s largest financial institutions. He has extensive experience in transforming legal teams, both as an in-house lawyer and COO, and as a consultant advising businesses on best market practice. John is founder and CEO of Melius Law, a legal operations consultancy, and was previously director of legal and COO, Legal and Regulatory, at Santander UK. Prior to that, he was general counsel at Bank of Ireland.
  
  John commented: “This collaboration marks a key milestone in the strategic growth of our consultancy. We’re excited to be part of Shoosmiths EIGHT at such an important time. By combining our experience with Shoosmiths’ innovative platform, I believe we can deliver solutions that will enable clients legal and compliance teams to thrive but also unlock new business opportunities. I look forward to helping drive these outcomes for our clients.”

• Lucy Powell is an experienced legal operations consultant and former in-house lawyer. She has an established reputation as a pragmatic advisor, understanding the needs of both legal teams and their counterparts in the business. Prior to joining Melius Law, Lucy provided legal operations transformation support to both clients and internally at KPMG UK and was previously general counsel at a global recruitment business and head of legal at Pizza Hut Europe.
  
  Lucy commented: “I’m thrilled to be part of this arrangement with Shoosmiths. The firm’s platform gives us a unique opportunity to put clients first by approaching their challenges from a holistic standpoint, incorporating change management, implementation of technologies, compliance advice, and risk mitigation.”

For more information about Shoosmiths EIGHT and the firm’s legal and compliance operations services, please visit Shoosmiths EIGHT | Connected services.